List of wealthiest animals explained

The list of wealthiest animals in the world include animals that have inherited or earned over 1 million U.S. dollars.

Through inheritance

Non-human animals are not legal persons and cannot directly own property. Pets typically "inherit" money through a pet trust through which the money must be used for their care after the death of the owner.^[1]

Name	Estimated worth in US$ millions (estimated)	Description
Tardar Sauce	99 (2018)	Better known as Grumpy Cat, Tardar Sauce had an estimated worth of at least $99 million.^[2]
Olivia Benson	(2018)^[3]	A Scottish Fold cat owned by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift.
Gigoo	(2016)	A Scots Dumpy hen willed $15 million. She was owned by Miles Blackwell, a publisher of textbooks.^[4]
Tommaso	(2018)	A black cat who lives in Italy and inherited $13 million. The cat was a stray that found its way into the home of Maria Assunta, a property magnate in Italy. When Assunta died at the age of 94, she willed her fortune to either the cat or an animal welfare charity that would look after it. It was decided after no suitable charity could be found that the money would be given to the cat, held in trust by Assunta's nurse.^[5]
Blackie	(2018)	Considered the richest cat by Guinness World Records until 2018, inherited a $12.5 million fortune.^[6]
Conchita	(2010)	A Chihuahua, was bequeathed $3 million plus an $8.3 million mansion in Miami by heiress Gail Posner.^[7]
Lulu	(2021)	An 8-year-old Border Collie, inherited $5 million in her owner's will.^[8]
Choupette	3.18 (2015)	In March 2015, Lagerfeld said, in an interview with The Cut, that Choupette had earned €3 million ($3.18 million USD) during 2014 from participating in two projects: one for cars in Germany, and the other for a Shu Uemura's "Shupette" beauty product in Japan.
Trouble	(2010)	A dog that was owned by Leona Helmsley, to which she bequeathed $12 million in a will that disinherited her two grandchildren. A judge later amended the amount down to $2 million.^[9]
Flossie	(2002)	A dog owned by Drew Barrymore, barked to alert her and then-husband Tom Green of a fire. She put her $1.3 million house in trust for the dog to show her gratitude.^[10]
Tinker	(2003)	A stray cat that was bequeathed an $800,000 home and a $226,000 trust fund.

Hoaxes

• Reportedly, Toby Rimes, a poodle, inherited $20 million from New Yorker Ella Wendel in 1931.^{[11] [12]} In fact, it seems that no such bequest was made.^[13]
• In 2021, the Associated Press and several other news organizations reported that a German Shepherd dog named Gunther VI inherited $400 million dollars from Countess Karlotta Leibenstein of Germany. The day after the Associated Press article, the New York Post published an article disputing the validity of the claim.^[14] The Associated Press later removed the article from its website and published a new article admitting the story was a fabrication.^[15] The story of Gunter was featured in the 2023 Netflix documentary series Gunther's Millions.^[16]

See also

• List of individual cats
• List of individual dogs
• List of individual apes
• List of wealthiest families

Notes and References

1. What Happens When Someone Leaves Millions to a Pet?. Fox. Emily Jane. 9 September 2015. Vanity Fair. en. 21 May 2019. 21 September 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200921170856/https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2015/09/pet-will-fortune. live.
2. Web site: 2018-08-12 . Pet Rich List 2018 reveals the wealthiest pets in the world . 2024-03-18 . Country Living . en-GB.
3. Web site: 2018-08-12 . Pet Rich List 2018 reveals the wealthiest pets in the world . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230715155356/https://www.countryliving.com/uk/wildlife/pets/a22695481/pet-rich-list-2018-wealthiest-pets-in-world/ . July 15, 2023 . 2023-07-15 . . en-GB.
4. Web site: 13 April 2016 . World's Richest Chicken - Millionaire Hen . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20180410072910/https://www.countryliving.com/life/kids-pets/a38210/this-is-the-worlds-richest-chicken/ . 10 April 2018 . 9 April 2018.
5. Web site: Tommaso, the Italian cat, inherits $13 million from owner Maria Assunta Public Radio International . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20180410074502/https://www.pri.org/stories/2011-12-12/tommaso-italian-cat-inherits-13-million-owner-maria-assunta . 10 April 2018 . 9 April 2018.
6. Web site: Wealthiest cat Guinness World Records . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20180410074910/http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/wealthiest-cat . 10 April 2018 . 9 April 2018.
7. News: Maremont . Mark . Scism . Leslie . 2010-06-17 . Chihuahua at Center of Fight Over Posner Heiress's Will . 2024-02-15 . . en-US.
8. News: Beres . Nick . 11 February 2021 . 8-year-old border collie named Lulu inherits $5 million in owner's will . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210215123745/https://www.newschannel5.com/news/8-year-old-border-collie-named-lulu-inherits-5-million-in-owners-will . 15 February 2021 . 15 February 2021 . NewsChannel5.
9. News: Buckley . Cara . 10 June 2011 . Cosseted Life and Secret End of a Millionaire Maltese . The New York Times.
10. Web site: Pets that inherited a fortune . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20160303153738/http://www.mnn.com/family/pets/stories/pets-that-inherited-a-fortune . 3 March 2016 . 22 February 2016 . MNN - Mother Nature Network.
11. Web site: These Are Some Of The Richest Pets In The World. Tim Parker. Business Insider Australia. 22 February 2016. 4 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304001640/http://www.businessinsider.com.au/these-are-some-of-the-the-richest-pets-in-the-world-2012-1. live.
12. Web site: The world's top 4 richest pets. 6 January 2012. Yahoo! Finance. 22 February 2016. 3 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160303080927/http://finance.yahoo.com/news/the-world-s-top-4-richest-pets.html. live.
13. Book: Mervin Rosenman. 1984. Forgery, Perjury and an Enormous Fortune.
14. News: Gould . Jennifer . November 18, 2021 . No, stupid: A dog isn't really selling Madonna's former Florida mansion . . January 3, 2023 . January 3, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230103182942/https://nypost.com/2021/11/18/a-dog-isnt-really-selling-madonnas-former-florida-mansion/ . live .
15. News: Spencer . Terry . Nov 23, 2021 . Story about dog 'selling' mansion part of long-running tale . . January 3, 2023 . January 3, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230103182944/https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/florida/fl-ne-dog-selling-mansion-stunt-20211124-ollf6w3zwvhidp3of7hkjn74ty-story.html . live .
16. News: The Biggest Lie in Netflix's Hit New Docuseries . Slate . February 1, 2023 . June 25, 2023 . Goffe, Nadira . May 10, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230510061057/https://slate.com/culture/2023/02/gunthers-millions-netflix-worlds-richest-dog-true-story.html . live .